The Premier League has taken the unusual step of issuing an official statement to justify the decision to keep Diogo Dalot on the field during Manchester United’s pivotal 2-0 derby win over Manchester City on Saturday.
Despite United’s clinical second-half display, the match was dominated by a flashpoint in the opening ten minutes when Dalot lunged into a high, studs-up challenge on Jeremy Doku.
While referee Anthony Taylor brandished only a yellow card, a chorus of high-profile experts, led by former official Mike Dean, slammed the decision, with Dean telling Gillette Soccer Saturday that the tackle was “100% a red card” and noting, “it’s high, across the knee cap. Red card all day long.”
This sentiment was echoed by Sky Sports pundit Roy Keane, who quipped, “I’m no expert in red cards, but I think that was one,” while Alan Shearer took to social media to vent, asking, “What on earth are they thinking?”
In response to the mounting backlash, the Premier League Match Centre clarified that VAR had checked the incident and confirmed the on-field decision because “the contact [was] deemed to be glancing and not with excessive force.”
The reprieve proved decisive, as a full-strength United side eventually broke the deadlock through Bryan Mbeumo and Patrick Dorgu, vaulting Michael Carrick’s men into the Champions League places while leaving City to rue what many believe was a major officiating oversight.